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The reviews are loaded with references to the gory violence. People wrote how they were revolted by some of the depictions of pain, torture and graphic descriptions of terrible things people do to each other. They were right. I've read literally hundreds of thrillers and mysteries...and while some made my skin crawl and a few made me go "ewwwww" none of them was an out and out gross-out.

This book is a very well written story that you will have to wade through rivers of gore to complete. There's nothing new here -- the theme has been explored many times. The "Fill In The Blank" monster descends on a sleepy town and starts doing terrible things to the residents. And of course it's up to a handful of people to stop it.

To be honest, I was intrigued bythe plot and, despite some very goofy character actions, it delivered.

If you're a fan of splatter movies, this writer is for you. (Wearing a raincoat when you're listening may help.) But the unrelenting violence seemed to start taking the place where I was really looking for some interesting character developments, or new plot twists -- something ANYTHING to take away from the endless nastiness of the narrative.

I won't be getting any more books by this author -- despite thinking the book had merit. They are literally disturbingly violent.

This is one of those books, where saying you like it, might make people wonder about you. This is not literature. This is not all that clever, although there are twists and turns and surprises. This has to be the goriest book I have ever read or listened to. This has torture that makes you cringe, lots of bloood. The evil characters are as evil as you get. Bernie's story is so disturbing I will never forget it.

You have now been warned as all the reviews mention this is gory. I have to say I loved it because it kept my attention, it made driving hundreds of miles fly by. Entertainment value was high for me and I was in the mood to be entertained.

I am following two people that gave reviews on this. One gave it five stars and one gave it one star. The one who gave it five stars reads lots of scary stuff. The one who gave it one star is big into outdoors and military books.

No, one guy does not cut off both his legs, but his dad cut off his leg and then he finds himself caught in a bear trap and he has to cut off his leg. I will admit that after about seven hours I was ready for people to quit cutting.

The part where a little boy is caught in a burning building with his elderly babysitter and his babysitter decides she is going to shoot him to save him from burning, was extremely well done. The school locker room massacre was good and etc.

This book started out ok. Quite grusome but scary none-the-less. WOuld have been ok, if the book length were cut in half. Too much of "good guys meet bad guys and just make it out alive" type situations. It also got a bit "sci-fi" for me.

So I told my girlfriend to recommend a book that would "shock me"; a book that would make me think "what kind of sick f&%# would come up with something so disturbing?!"

Well I didn't have that exact reaction from Afraid. One theory is because maybe I'm already some kind of sick f&%# myself. :) That's actually a pretty solid theory...

With that said, what I will say is that I discovered a really creative and gripping story. Yes, there is some serious gore, but the author only gives enough detail about those situations to allow your imagination to take it to the next sick level. He doesn't dwell on those details and that keeps the story moving at a great pace.

Small town USA is infiltrated by a bunch of crazy sadistic soldiers looking for a particular person. They confront people pretty much one at a time looking for said person. Three main characters are the town's only hope (not really they basically just save themselves). Much like "Trapped" all the characters are confronted, some fall or something stops them from escaping and they're tortured, somehow manage to miraculously get away, run, fall or get stuck, tortured, run somewhere else blah blah blah. I did like this one better than Trapped and could at least finish it (couldn't with his Endurance). He does a really good job of describing the torture without being too "gross". I just wish he would come up with different "scenes" for lack of a better word. They're all the same. Run, trip fall or get stuck, be tortured, escape, run somewhere else and the whole thing starts over again. Uh, how about hide or run out of town or find weapons. Seems like a B rated straight to DVD story. The plot was unique in this one and the narrator did a descent job. Just all the running around haphazardly drives me crazy. If you're bored and don't have anything better to read give it a try.

This book started out well. In fact, I enjoyed the book completely for the first 1/3rd of the story, until I realized that this is just a horrific collection of unimaginably gruesome ways for people to die And die they do, one after another, one bloody,paintful and nightmareish way after another. I can tolerate such horror when it is peppered throughout, but in this book, the gore and bloodshed is as thick as peanut butter on a PBJ sandwich. To make matters worse, the actions of the "heros" of this story are so absurd as to be insulting to the reader. As I got into the 2nd half of the book, I began to realize that it was escalating to the point where I was not sure if I wanted to continue. But I kept hoping/expecting something would change. Time after time, just when I thought one character or another would manage to escape some horrific fate, I came to expect disappointment. Before long, I realized that this book was just DARK. The entire story, how it was constructed and how it unfolded, is discouraging, depressing, and frightening, not in what is happening to the characters/victims, but frightening to realize that someone could write such a book, that a publisher would promote it, and that the public might read it. This type of book, these descriptions, in the hands and minds of suseptable people is what scares me. While I do not advocate censorship, I also do not advocate that this book be considered anything but dismal, dark, and DANGEROUS. This author scares me, and I will remember the name, as one to avoid. The mind that could write such a book, and consider it worthy ... this is what scares me. I would not want this person for a neighbor.

I agree with Barry from Vancouver 100%. This is an outrageously scary story and one of these days, I will work up the courage to listen to the whole thing! (I'm still checking that my doors and windows are locked, and peeking through the curtains!)
Dick Hill would have been a much better narrator. He can do "menacing" very well but I probably would have had a heart attack in the first chapter!

This book was so much fun! I will admit that I am mostly a Dean Koontz and Stephen King kinda reader. I picked up this audio a few weeks ago for drive to Laughlin, NV. It's about a 4 hour drive. I was so taken by this book I actually drove around the Casino's parking lot for a good 15 minutes because I didn't want to stop listening.

From the first pages to the last this book grabs you and doesn't really let go. Sometimes authors get too caught up in exposition and it can be boring because you already know what's going on and get it, but the author has to take the time explains things in too much detail for all the stupid people that might be reading so they get it. This book didn't seem to ever do that. Every single part of the book was interesting. What was going? Who were these people? How were they capable of such violence? How could they take all the pain?

It all unfolds in one night, step by step in a suspenseful, action packed gore fest. But, it was all so believable, you're on a roller coaster here and will be holding your breath till the very last sentence. Characters you felt for and bad guys that were just on the verge of over the top and yet, you take it all, hook, line and sinker. This is a great book to listen to on a long drive in the middle of the night. It will keep you awake and keep you going from beginning to end.

I am sooo confused!! I think I must have downloaded an alternate universe addition of this book (UR?). After reading the glowing reviews, the one I listened to was just silly and non-dimensional.....on a scale where King is a 10, Koontz is a 3, this guy is somewhere in the negatives.

The Story, the characterization and the narration. All brilliantly packaged into one suburb piece of audio enjoyment. The story was so captivating, I could really Imagine every piece of detail whilst the story was being told. I found the story to be very gripping, gruesome, yet very enjoyable and I really felt some empathy for the characters, I felt that I could connect with them and feel what they were feeling. That is what I found crucial in any story.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Afraid?

All the gruesome bits defiantly. When all the bad guys were hunting down the characters, the things they did to them, and all those grizzly details. Yeah that stuck in my mind a lot.

What does Phil Gigante bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

His voice. The tone in which he spoke in to emphasis key points in the story, the change in voice to distinguish from the characters. Brilliant, he really has a way of drawing the listener into the story and the world in which the story takes place.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

This book has a lot of emotion built into it. The first time I listened to it I was camping in Canada, in this site surrounded by wilderness, and I can say the story did freak me out a little in places. It was brilliant!

Any additional comments?

I have listened to this book several times, and each time I enjoy it better than the previous time. Possibly my favorite book I have bought so far.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Rose

9/27/16

Overall

Performance

Story

"and so they all lived happily ever after. Oh lordie."

well let's face it. if it's not a spooky old empty house it's the mad scientist when it comes to extreme horror and this was extreme. It's not for the faint-hearted or the squeamish. It's predictable in places but powerful and pacey all the way through. Fran's a bit of a do-gooder and reallyt irritating but well drawn and well created. There's probably a lot of truth in trhis book and a huge amount of info dumping but done in a good way that keeps the listener inthralled right to the very end. Still they all appear to have lived happily ever after and the bit about the monkey near the end is a mite unbelievable and the fact that the two brothers both die is wimpy I have to admit that much but if you like your hard core horrors with some compassion in them then this is a darned good book to read. It's not too long either and the naration is good as well.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

sarahmoose2000

10/24/12

Overall

"Zombie army"

A small town is attacked by 'red ops', and only a few manage to defend themselves. Can't say too much without giving away plot spoilers.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

jennifer

alfreton, United Kingdom

12/29/11

Overall

"afraid by jack kilborn"

Another great book from mr kilborn,i have enjoyed all the ones he has wrote so far,and like the others he should put them in to film.This book is very gory like most of his stuff a great listen

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

Trevor

london, United Kingdom

6/3/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Started well, quickly became very silly."

The only thing that kept me listening was the narrator, who kept things lively and made the personalities of the antagonists distinctive and entertaining. The title of this review sums up why I was disappointed with this book, explaining in more detail would probably spoil the listen for people determined to give it a go.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

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